Machining Centers In Motion

Special Section A collection of articles describes ideas and technologies related to moving a machining center more effectively.

Article
From:
9/9/2005
Modern Machine Shop

Certain machining-center-related improvements can be entirely captured in numbers that appear on the specification sheet. A particular machine may have a higher spindle speed, a faster feed rate, a shorter tool change time and/or a tighter repeatability spec. Then there are other potential improvements that can't be captured in such a handy number, even though the importance of that improvement, for the right user, may be dramatic. Many of these less quantifiable improvements have to do with moving the machine tool in a better or more efficient way.

"Machining centers in motion" is the theme of the four articles that follow. Each short article describes an idea or a technology aimed at moving a machining center more effectively. Two of the articles have to do with control technology and one has to do with machine design, with each of these articles covering features or concepts that are relatively new. Then, older machines also get a nod, with the final article offering a fresh idea about tool paths that may make an existing machining center more productive when it comes to roughing out pockets.

Machining centers in motion

Self-Improving CNC

Motor Type Vs. Machine Design

Understanding Jerk Control

A Different pattern For Plunges

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